CoachA periodic sound of frequency — the fundamental — is in general a sum of sines at the frequencies , , its harmonics. A sound reduced to its fundamental is a pure tone, like a tuning fork’s.
Examples
Example 21.15 (Why you recognize the caller)
A flute’s A is nearly a pure tone; a violin bowing the same adds strong harmonics at . Same pitch and loudness, yet no one confuses them: a voice, too, is a spectrum you know by heart.